Royal Romance: Lost
by XxRainbowPrincessxX
Summary: A Drake x Riley angsty love revelation; set just after the end of Book one of the Royal Romance.
1. Chapter 1

Somewhere in New York

It's been a few days since Riley boarded her flight back to New York. Bertrand and Maxwell begged and pleaded with her to stay. In her mind, she felt that she didn't want to hurt anyone else, it wasn't fair to anyone.

She wasn't used to be scrutinised in a country that she did not feel like she belonged. Yes, undoubtedly Cordonia was idyllic; the beautiful architecture, the clear blue seas and seeing stars every night warmed her heart - but she craved the anonymity that New York provided her. No one gave a shit who you were. You are just another number…

As she sat on her bed, back in her apartment she mused. Her apartment was a third of the suite she enjoyed at the Beaumont estate - but that didn't matter, she finally felt safe from the prying eyes of the Court and the media.

She scanned the photos on her pale blue walls. Pictures of friends from the bar she worked in - the friends she distanced herself from when she was in Cordonia. Riley tucked her legs up to her chest, her hands running up her cheeks, into her hairline. Pulling at her hair near her temples, she lowered her head to her knees and screamed.

The short burst of release helped her feel a little better, but not much. Mascara stained her skin as it ran down her face, dropping onto her arms. She felt like a lost child, not knowing where to turn. None of her friends in Cordonia had been in contact. She knew most of the nobles were complete assholes, but what about Hana, Maxwell… what about Drake? He gave her enough of a hard time telling her she was becoming one of them… She kept looking at her phone in hope that someone… even Drake would message her as she kept swiping through photos on her iPhone.

He was her rock, as much as he annoyed her so much… he was always there. She missed him, his disapproving looks… his irritating way of winding her up… his eyes. As she reminisced, she reaches for the bottle of whiskey at the side of her bed, downing a mouthful. The burning sensation didn't help the pain, but at least she could control that.

Meanwhile back in Cordonia

Under Liam's orders, no one was to contact Riley for her safety until something could be done. He knew she was safe in New York from the press -

This would buy them some time to ascertain the situation.

Drake found himself in the evenings since she had left in Liam's bar in the basement of the palace. He mulled over a tumbler of whiskey, swirling it in the glass, staring into the whirlpool it created. This is fucking bullshit… slamming his other hand onto the wooden table, sinking the mouthful of whiskey left in the glass. Yes, she aggravated him to the point of exhaustion; he felt lost as if he had no purpose.

Getting up off the oak chair, he grabbed the tumbler and launched it at the wall. Frustration left his throat, echoing through the room. Drake decided that he had to do something. His stubbornness knew no bounds, but he couldn't sit back and do nothing. Grabbing his jacket from the back of the chair, he storms out of the bar and towards the gates of the palace. A night guard attempts to stop him before he leaves.

Anger clouds his judgement, shoving the guard, "Get the fuck out of my way…"


	2. Chapter 2

As Drake arrives at the airport, he feels his cell phone vibrates in his pocket. Slowly he looks at the screen… a call from Liam. Clearing his throat he answers roughly, "Yeah?"

Liam tries to talk him round, this wasn't the plan. His brow furrows, his eyes getting darker and temper building. Unable to control himself, Drake's fist tightens as he clenches his jaw. "I'm going…" Hanging up his phone, he runs to the booking desk and purchases the next flight to New York using his American passport to get through customs quicker.

As he boards his flight, he removes the slip of paper that Maxwell had given him with Riley's address from his jacket pocket. If Liam knew Maxwell was involved, he would be livid; but Drake didn't care. The obligation he had to Liam to take care of Riley during her time in Cordonia meant they had to spend a lot of time together.

She infuriated him, she was like a vulture, picking at his very soul. Breaking down his barriers but unknowingly to her, as much as he saw her as an obligation… she became his closest confidante. Her laugh was infectious and like a virus infiltrated his mind. He knew that seeing her would soothe his mind, knowing she was ok. Drake drifted into a light slumber as the flight was on its course to New York.

This was the sixth day that Riley was back in her apartment. She left only to go to the liquor store at the end of the block. Her hair was disheveled, her eyes bloodshot from tears. Riley's face was sunken due to the weight she had lost - her appetite was gone. The apartment was littered with empty bottles of vodka and whiskey and the stale smell of cigarettes lingered in the air.

She returned to her room, comforted by her duvet and hugging her pillow tightly. She had a very bad habit of scratching her skin as a nervous tic. Over the last five days, her arms were superficially cut as the loneliness consumed her more and more as the minutes ticked on her watch.

Her concentration was shattered when she heard a knock at her front door. Putting her pillow over her head, she intentionally ignored it, but the knocking wouldn't stop. She screamed into her pillow… "Leave me the fuck alone! … fuck off!"

The knocking continued until she heard a familiar voice… "Brooks! …Brooks!" No… she was drunk and this was her drunken brain tricking her; torturing her, laughing at her…

Hearing loud noises she hides under the covers, Drake kicks her front door breaking the lock. His eyes widen as he sees the empty bottles littering the apartment, kicking them out of his way. He opens the curtains wide, opening a window to let the air circulate. He notices a door not fully closed and walks towards it… he gently opens the door and examines the area, noticing a body under the duvet. "Riley?"

He sees movement under the duvet, walking slowly to the bed, she pulls the cover just enough to see who is in her house… Riley croaks "Get out… leave me alone…" turning her body to face the wall. "… all I do is hurt people…" his shoulders fall, worry across his face He sits on the corner of her bed and places his hand gently on her head… "Riley… no that's not true."

She sniffles as she pulls herself up, slowly turning her head to look at him… he's shocked to see her in this state. He's never seen her like this. Her face was grey, her eyes sunken and dark; her lips blue. Her blonde hair was tangled into its curls. This was not the Riley he was used to seeing, this was a woman who was broken. Her sore, stinging eyes meet his for a brief second before looking away ashamedly, "why… why are you here?"

He pulls her in close as she tries to squirm from his arms. "Drake… Drake… get off of me!" He holds her right against his chest, taking the beating she's giving him to let her go… he kisses the top of her head soothing her, holding her tight until she no longer has the strength left to fight. Riley finally succumbs to him, collapsing in his arms and begins to cry; tears that she could not stop.

"C'mon Brooks… lets get you cleaned up and get some coffee." He whispers to her, "It's ok… It's only me… no one is here to hurt you…"

She nods as she holds her head, pulling at her t-shirt to cover her underwear as she crawls out of bed and stumbles to the door, not looking back at Drake. All she can feel is shame.

As Drake hears the sound of her shower he takes his cell phone from his jeans pocket and calls Liam. "Before you start… by the way things look here, if one of us didn't come she would have been dead by her own volition!" Liam sounds fraught as Drake interjects, "She's coming back with me… she can't stay here. Let me get her sobered up first…"

He removes the bottles from the floor and tidies up as she showers. She hears the distinct click of the coffee maker. The shower burns her skin, entering and burrowing into the cuts on her arms - she's numb to the pain due to her hangover kicking in.

She massages her temples as she leaves the bathroom, looking around apprehensively. Drake stands in the corner of the kitchen giving her a coy smile. "How's the head?" Riley gives him a look of death… "Wouldn't you like to know?" "I would actually…" as he folds his arms.

She reaches for the coffee and takes a small sip, looking at him over the cup. "So why exactly are you here?" He looks at her puzzled, "What do you mean? We've been worried about you!" She laughs and rolls her eyes… "Yeah… you were all fucking worried… you all let me get dragged like some fucking criminal to the airport…"

He looks at her saddened, a lump in his throat forming… "we… we didn't know. We tried to find you, but the guards wouldn't let us leave the room." She takes another sip of her coffee and grunts at him, "I'm doing fine…"

Shaking his head… "you don't look fine…" Riley is livid and screams, gesturing for him to leave "Get out of my fucking apartment Drake…" He feels his temper rising due to her being ungrateful, raising his voice as he runs his hand through his disheveled chestnut brown hair, "Why the actual fuck do you think I'm here? Do you think this was easy for me Brooks? I couldn't do anything, my hands were tied. And… and… seeing you like this makes me realise my decision was the right thing to do."

He notices the cuts and bruises to her arms as she sets the coffee cup back into the counter. She hangs her head down and quickly crosses her arms to hide the marks. As Riley moves, he notices her clothes hanging and her collarbones protruding against her slight frame. Calmly he asks her, "When did you last eat something?" Her brow furrows and begrudgingly she answers, "I don't remember…"

He extends his hand out to her "Let's get something…" she freezes, contemplating should she go or not. His eyes plead with her as he smiles sweetly, "…the Brooks I know would have had at least four portions of chilli cheese fries by now." Finally agreeing she picks up her coat, "Who's going to fix my door?"

He laughs, awkwardly rubbing the back of his neck… "Sorry about that… you just had me a little worried!"


	3. Chapter 3

"It's not like there's anything here to steal…" she gestures in the air. She walks towards him timidly, shivering under her coat. Putting an arm around her, he keeps her balance as he closes the door over behind them as best he can.

Riley uses her hand to shield herself from the sun, as it burns her eyes and points with her other hand, "there's a nice Greek place two blocks away…" Drake raises his eyebrow and looks at her questionably… "Brooks, do you think I came here to get food that I can get at home? Let's get some proper food." Shyly smiling, she beckons him to follow her, "I know just the place…"

They walk quietly through the streets, neither of them speaking as they are both lost in their thoughts. Drake keeps the pace slow as he knows her body has taken a beating in the last week, mentally and physically. He's seen her rock bottom. She's unguarded, she knows she has nothing to lose, especially in New York.

They arrive at a diner called Frank's. Wearily smiling back at Drake, she opens the door. "Frank is like an uncle to me… so be nice!" An older Italian man greets them at the door, squinting as he looks her, "Riley? Is that you?" She nods enthusiastically, "Yeah Frank it's me…" she turns to Drake, "… and this is my friend Drake." Frank reaches out to Drake and shakes his hand. He looks back and Riley and gives her a squeeze. Chuckling, Frank teases "Are they not feeding you out there? Where have you gone?" She blushes and looks down at the floor. "Ok, well I won't keep you guys… I've got a table away from the crowd, so you can get some peace and quiet." Drake thanks him for his generosity.

As they are seated, Drake looks into Riley's eyes - he sees a reflection of himself in there. The same lost feelings; he could feel her hurt. He broke the silence, reaching out for her hand, "I… I'm sorry I didn't try harder or come sooner to get you…" placing her hand in his, she uses her other hand to fix a random strand of hair into place, then slowly cups the side of his cheek. "You didn't have to… you're not the person who should be sorry…" her voice breaking, "I… I… I should be saying sorry. I didn't mean what I said… I was angry…"

A waiter comes to the table and they break apart. "Can I take your order?" "Yes, two New Yorker burgers with extra fries and a bottle of the best single malt that you got…" Drake looks at her frowning, "Is whiskey a good idea?" She hisses, "it's 5pm somewhere Drake!" He nods at the waiter for him to leave with the order as is.

Riley folds her arms and rests her head on them, "You know… I might be better off here…I won't get in trouble, I can't hurt anyone and no one can hurt me…" Drake felt his heart sink. Those words stung him to his core. He knew how he felt about her. He couldn't see the woman who was so self-assured and confident breaking in front of his very eyes.

The whiskey is served to the table along with two tumblers. Drake pours a little into both and hands one to her, "Promise you'll go a little easier?" Raising her head from her arms, she laughs a little, "We'll see Mr. Walker…" Smiling at her chuckle, "See that's the Riley I… uh… we love. The person who is annoyingly and irritatingly happy all the fucking time…" she rolls her eyes at him, finally producing her dazzling wide smile.

Grinning from ear to ear, she finally closes her eyes and shakes her head.

Her stomach flutters… she doesn't feel sick, so it's not that… her hangover is gone, so it's not that either. It's when she looks at him, a weight feels like it's been lifted off of her slender shoulders. He aggravates her, but he's here. He's here for her. Raising her tumbler,

"Mr. Walker, I propose a toast… to alcohol, the source of all life's problems and solutions." He reluctantly clinks his glass with hers and they both take a mouthful of whiskey as their food arrives.

Riley barely touches her food, a few bites here and there, her stomach has shrunken since she came back to New York, so can't tolerate anything too heavy - it's the first thing she's eaten in over a week. Drake on the other hand… he's content. She laughs as he devours his meal… "Hey Brooks, leave it out… not every day I get this delicacy…" The waiter comes to take their plates as they finish. Riley extends her hand to Drake, he holds her gentle hand as he watches her fingers intertwining with his.

"Brooks… I… I don't know if this is a good idea…"

She pulls her hand back and clenches her jaw. "Fine!" She throws down a couple of bills to cover the tab and grabs her bag… staring into his very soul, she angrily retorts, "Don't follow me!"

Reaching for his jacket from the back of the seat, he runs out to catch up with her, grabbing onto her arm to stop her. She pulls back turning to face him, "You said I was the same as them… the same…as them…" he hears the venom in her voice being projected at him, "I have a fucking heart Drake… you know what… actually no I should be like them… at least they get what they want… and they don't get hurt in the process."

This isn't where he thought this trip was going to go. He didn't realise she was so far gone, so embittered. Blinking at her in shock, "…and what do you want?" Her eyes filled with rage, she screamed and pushed him "… you… I want you, you fucking idiot!" Breathing heavily, Riley begins to calm down, a lump forming in her throat, "You've been my rock throughout this whole thing, you've always been there for me, you never made me…" trembling as tears run down her face, "….feel like I was abandoned."

He takes a stride to her, cupping her face in his hands. He never noticed how petite her features were, how soft her skin was, how blue her eyes were. He gently moved one of his hands, running it through her golden blonde soft curls. Like most of this trip, he knew it wasn't right… he knew he shouldn't…but he did it anyway. Pulling her closer he hungrily kissed her and she pulled on his jacket, wrapping her arms around him.

They stepped back, breathless, staring into each other's abyss and blushed. They were anonymous in the land of opportunity and had nothing to hide here.

Their blissful moment hijacked by Drake's cell phone. It was a text from Liam.

"Have you talked her around yet… when you're ready to come back, let me know and I can arrange something."

He didn't speak and just showed her the text. Stuttering as she was scared, "I… I…don't want to go back…" and shook her head profusely. "Are you only here to take me back there…"

Saddened, Drake takes her delicate hands in his, "Please believe me… I did come to find you to make sure you were ok, but I'd never force you back… The Riley I know is strong, fiercely competitive…" he chuckles, "…and would stab a bitch if she had to. So I was going to ask… not demand… but only when you're ready"

Blushing… she catches his eye, "Can you stay for a little longer?" Pulling her in for a cuddle and kisses the top of her head. As he runs his hands down her back, he feels her shoulder blades and spine and tries to hold back tears - he has to be strong for her. "I will be here with you always…you take as long as you need…" she nods in agreement, holding him tight against her… "As long as I have you… I can do anything."

They both found the missing piece of their puzzles… for they had each other's missing piece without realising it. Fate always found a way of reminding Riley why she came to Cordonia; but now she realised - it wasn't to be Liam's Queen, it wasn't about the suitor competition; it was always for Drake.


End file.
